Jimmy Butler trade rumors peaked this week with reports that the Chicago Bulls are looking to move into another direction and rebuild with younger guys. But the team management, according to reports, has denied that trade speculation involving their franchise player.

Marc Stein of ESPN reports that “sources with knowledge of the Bulls’ thinking emphatically deny the notion that All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler is available”. This puts a stop on the Jimmy Butler trade rumors that really did not make sense in the first place.

The Bulls signed Butler to a five-year deal worth $92 million last year. That is about $18M per season until the 2019-2020 season. With the rise in salary cap, that is already a very friendly deal for a superstar.

Chaos in Chicago leads to Butler trade?

“Given all the chaos enveloping the Bulls lately, with considerable doubt bubbling about how much longer Rajon Rondo ‎will stick around Chicago, hanging onto one of the game’s best two-way players seems prudent,” Stein added in his latest trade rumors article.

Butler is playing in his sixth season with the Bulls, the team that drafted him last in the first round of the 2011 NBA Draft. In 38 games the 2016-2017 NBA Season, Butler is performing like a superstar. He is averaging 25.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

Trading Butler this season does not make sense for the Bulls especially if they can only get first round picks or younger superstar prospects in return.

Ric Bucher of the Bleacher Report restarted the Jimmy Butler trade rumors with a report saying that the Bulls are shopping the two-way wingman. Bucher even mentioned his own “league source” who claims that Butler is available “at the right price.”

But with the recent denial from Stein’s source, it looks like this report is just another trade rumor at this point of the season. Jimmy Butler remains with the Bulls for now and could be their franchise player the next few seasons.